Enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) is an important cause of acute childhood diarrhea. The evaluation of ETEC in children is important for therapeutic and economic purposes. Hence, this study aimed to evaluate the frequency of ETEC among diarrheic children, their multidrug and fluoroquinolone resistant pattern. A total of twenty diarrheagenic E. coli (DEC) isolates were gotten from hundred diarrheal samples using biochemical and molecular methods. Multiplex PCR was used to detect the presence of four different pathological types of DEC. Disk diffusion method was used to determine the antibiotic susceptibility of the organisms. Biofilm formation was detected by thiazoylblue tetrazolium bromide dye in a 96-well plate. Results showed that ETEC represented 30% of the DEC, of which 80% were multidrug and fluoroquinolone resistant. The biofilm production abilities of all the ETEC were found to exist within weak, moderate and strong biofilm producers. We observed a high ETEC frequency and rapid emergence of multidrug/fluoroquinolone resistance, suggesting that it is one of the most important causes of frequent drug resistant diarrhea in children in this region.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.